Bottle carrier and package



May 11, 1948. E. M. BROGDEN ETAL BOTTLE CARRIER AND PACKAG Filed Aug.15, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 NVENTORS Elf/V557 M moans/v iga/v0 R BIFOGDE/VI I H I I P I I I IJPJI IJ.

May 11, 1948. E. MQBROGDEN ETAL BOTTLE CARRIER AND PACKAGE Filed Aug.15, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORJ [mm 7 M swam/v 5 1mm 2 BROS/161VBOTTLE CARRIER AND PACKAGE Filed Aug. 15, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR3 EPA/57 mazoaauv Patented May 11, 1948 BOTTLE CARRIER monomer:

Ernest M. Brogden and Ronald R. Brogden, Savannah, Ga., assignors to thepresident and directors of the Manhattan. Company (sometimes known asBank of the Manhattan Company), trustee, New York, N. Y., a corporationof New York Application August 15, 1940, Serial No. 352,810

1 7 Claims.

This invention relates to bottle carriers and packages;' and it relatesmore particularly to a novel carrier or container adapted for useespecially in the distribution of soft drinks and beer to consumers,said carrier and the package constituted by the combination thereof witha group of bottles held thereby possessing distinctive characteristicsof great practical utility and advantage not heretofore realized in theart.

In the distribution of bottled beverages, such as soft drinks and beer,to consumers, it is now common practice to package a small number ofbottles, usually six or less, all of a given uniform size or capacityand shape, in a carrier or container of paperboard or the like for saleto customers in retail stores, and to encourage the customer, after thebeverage is consumed, to bring the bottles back in such carrier toobtain a refund of the deposit for the bottles commonly required at thetime of purchase. Various kinds of bottle carriers have been proposedheretofore for this purpose, and a number of them have gone into actualuse to a greater or less extent; but it is a well known fact that allthese prior proposals have fallen far short of being entirelysatisfactory for the purpose, each of them being characterized bydefects or objections of one kind or another which, although theirexistence has been quite generally recognized by the art, haveheretofore resistec attempts to overcome them. None of such prior bottlecarriers meets, at the most, more than a part of the many important andsometimes conflicting practical requirements which should be met by acarrier that is to be actually satisfactory; while the complicatedstructure or extreme crudeness (or both) of most of them, coupled withcost that is often excessively high, further emphasizes the lackheretofore of any adequate solution of the problem presented.

A primary requirement of a bottle carrier for the purposes stated isthat it shall hold the consumer-unit or small plurality of bottlesfirmly in a compact group, with substantially no relative movement ofthe component members of the group that would tend to cause mutualimpact and resultant breakage. The bottles must also be so held thatthere is no danger of their falling out of the container under practicalconditions of use which necessarily includes more or less careless andeven rough handling by distributors and customers. Yet, as against this,it must be easy for the customer to remove the filled bottles from thecarrier or container and also to replace the empty bottles therein andcarry them back to the store for refund of the bottle deposit, likewisewithout any danger of the empty bottles falling out of the carrier. Inother words, this part of the problem involves providing for positiveretention of the bottles in the container to prevent accidentaldislodgment and falling out, without at the same time making removal sodifflcult that the consumer is likely to rupture or destroy thecontainer, thus rendering it useless for returning the empty bottles. Inorder to provide for easy removal of the bottles, bottle carriersheretofore proposed have in most instances been of such character thatthe packages are flimsy and loose, the bottles being capable of suchsubstantial relative movement within the container that, in the courseof ordinary handling, they bump into each other and are chipped or evenbroken; the bottles also readily falling out of the container if thepackage is upset or tilted considerably.

Again, simplicity is indispensable in the construction of such acarrier, not only because its cost must be kept down but becauseconsumers will not ordinarily take the time to bother with constructionswhich require much thought to unload or to re-fill with empty bottles. Acomplicated construction'therefore simply invites destruction of thecarrier by the consumer, thus greatly reducing the chances that theempty bottles will ever be returned to the bottler. Yet, in order toprovide some means designed to prevent bottles from falling out of thecontainer, resort has been had heretofore to various more or lesscomplicated expedients which, in addition to frequently increasing thecarrier cost substantially, are further objectionable as making it muchslower to load or fill with bottles at the bottling or distributingplant, besides rendering it difiicult for the customer to replace theempty bottles in the carrier when he is readyto return them to the storefor a refund. In some in-' stances this has been carried to the pointwhere the consumer cannot get the bottles out without destroying ordamaging the carrier, or at least taking it apart or dismantling it.

Furthermore, some form of hand-hold or handle, by which the package canbe carried conveniently and comfortably by the customer, isindispensable. Prior proposals have been quite generally characterizedby insufficient attention to this phase of the problem, which is highlyimportant when it is borne in mind that a group of half'a dozen filled12-ounce bottles, a number widely sold as a retail consumer unit in thecase of soft drinks, for example, represents a substantial weight whichcan soon become very uncomfortable to carry it a hand-hold is providedthat tends to cut the fingers. Most bottle carriers heretofore proposedembodying handholds formed by registering openings provided in abuttingend portions of the elongated blanks from which the carriers are set up;and although resort has been had to interlocking cut-out flaps and otherdevices for shielding the sharp edge of the resultant upstandinghand-hold thus formed, thme have only partially mitigated the objectionwhile at the same time further complicating the container construction.

In addition, the package as a whole, consisting of the carrier loadedwith bottles, should present an attractive appearance and should alsoprovide for so exposing at least a part of the bottles of the group thatthe labels thereon can be effectively displayed. The carrier itselfshould also provide an adequate area of unobstructed surface forcarrying appropriate advertising matter.

Aside from the foregoing, a factor that is fundamental because of thehighly competitive conditions prevailing in the trade is that a carrierof this kind shall be of low cost to manufacture, and also that thelabor cost of loading or packing bottles into it at the bottling ordistributing plant shall be very small. This fundamental requirement oflow cost in respect both to cheapness of manufacture and ease andrapidity of loading and packing, imposes a practical limitation whichgreatly complicates the problem when the necessity of meeting the otherrequirements above mentioned is considered. As a result, bottle carriersheretofore proposed quite generally involve an extravagant use of thepaperboard or like flexible sheet material of which they are made, inrespect both to the area thereof necessary to employ and also its gaugeor thickness. A factor contributing largely to this extravagance hasbeen the fundamental requirement that the carrier must in any event beamply strong to carry the rather substantial loads involved; and sincethe prior proposed constructions have invariably failed either toachieve really, compact loading or to provide for strain distributioneven reasonably. approximating true uniformity, the use .of excessivelyheavy and correspondingly expensive paperboard stock as the carriermaterial was unavoidable.

A principal object of the present invention is I to provide anovelbottle carrier and container, and the combination thereof with acontained consumer-unit or group of bottles forming a complete package,which takes into account all the requirements above outlined and meetsthem satisfactorily, thus obviating wholly or in large part theobjections inherent in prior carriers and packages of the general classconcerned. This object is achieved by correlating certain essentialstructural features of the carrier and of the complete package in amanner novel in the art and with the attainment of advantageous resultsnot heretofore achieved.

Generally described, the bottle carrier or carton of the invention is inthe form of an openended tube made of somewhat stiff but flexible tlesfrom falling out of the carrier.

ing parallelism with the base. The top of the carrier is provided withone or more rows of apertures extending longitudinally of the tube, thatis, parallel to its axis, these apertures being suitably spaced apart inthe row and of a size suflicient to permit the tapered neck portions ofthe bottles to project therethrough for a substantial distance above thehighest portion or crest of the carrier top. Provision is made, byaperturing or otherwise, adjacent the junctions of the two side wallswith the bottom whereby to permit the circular base edges or rims ofbottles with which the container is to be loaded to project into locking engagement with the side walls. The size of the neck-receivingapertures in the carrier top is so correlated to the virtual height ofthe carrier or, in other words, to the peripheral distance between saidapertures and the corresponding respective junctions with the side wallsof the carrier bottom that when bottles of predetermined uniform sizeand shape are loaded into the car-- rier, lateral projection of thebottle rims or base edges into the aforesaid locking engagement with theside walls is compelled. Thus, as a result of co-ordinating the severalaforesaid structural features in the manner described, in designing thecarrier to accommodate bottles of given uniform size and shape, thecarrier or container has, in effect, a greater cross-section availablefor bottle accommodation on the transverse planes passing through thecenter lines of the bottles positioned in the longitudinal row or rows,than it has at its open ends or at localities intermediate adjacentbottles in the row. This relative restriction of the effective area ofthe open ends of the carrier and certain intermediate peripheral zonesaffords positive resistance effective to maintain all the bottles intheir proper predetermined positions and, especially, to prevent the endbot- The bottle group is thus held compactly within the container, thewhole forming a structurally strong of anend bottle and, using the edgeof the contai'ner top as a fulcrum, exert relativelyslight leverage onthe bottle to tilt it and force the base and body portion outwardlythrough the open end v against the resistance of the relativelyconstricted end margin. The bottles intermediate the open ends 'of thecarrier ends can then be easily removed. In loading the carrier orcarton; where it is pre-formedand the loading is performed manually, theoperation is in general the reverse of that just described. Both theloading and unloading operations will be explained in greater detailhereinafter.

Other novel features and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent as the description proceeds.

In order to enable a fuller understanding of the principles of theinvention, certain desirable practical embodiments thereof will bedescribed in detail hereinafter by way of illustrative examples, withoutintending, thereby to restrict the scope of the invention. The aforesaidillustrative examples are shown in the accompanying drawings whereinFigs. 1 and 2 are a side elevation and end elevation, respectively, of acarrier and package wherein a group of bottles is arranged in a singlerow;

Fig. 3 is a plan, looking at the package of Figs. 1 and 2 from below;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1, partly broken away and in section,illustrating how the bottles may be inserted into or removed from thepackage;

Fig. 5 is a development of the carrier or carton blank from which thecarrier is formed;

Fig. 6 is a view of the completed or set-up carton and assembled handle,collapsed flat for s ippi Fig. 7 is a plan or a desirable type ofdetachable handle strip, viewed from its under side;

Fig. 8 is an end view of the handle strip on a larger scale, partly insection on the line 8-8 of Fig, 7, looking in the direction of thearrows;

Figs. 9 and 10 are a side elevation and end elevation, respectively, ofanother embodiment of the carrier and package of the invention, thiscarrier being adapted to hold two rows of three bottles each;

Fig. 11 is a development of the blank from which the carrier of Figs. 9and 10 is set up;

Fig. 12 is a plan showing the package of Figs. 9 and 10, on a smallerscale, as viewed from below; and

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary end elevation, also on a smaller scale,illustrating a modified detail of construction.

Referring first more particularly to that form of the inventionillustrated in Figs. 1 to 6, the open-ended tubular carrier indicatedgenerally at C is designed to carry a single row of bottles B, therebeing in this instance three bottles in the row, although of course thenumber may be greater or less than three. The carrier is formed from aunitary strip of flexible sheet material, such as paperboard or likematerial of suitable gauge bent into the desired form with its ends Illand I l firmly secured together permanently in any suitable way, as bygluing, stapling, stitching or otherwise. In this instance, said endsare shown overlapped and glued together, by way of example. Bottomsection I! is defined by bending lines I 3 and I 4 which are desirablyscored or creased in the material of the 7 registry with bending line i9 when the blank ends have been overlapped and secured together insetting up the carrier from the blank. The top section is desirablyprovided with additiona1 bending lines 20 to facilitate ready fiexureand close conformation to the contour of the lower neck or shoulderportions of the bottles. As

shown, both top and bottom sections, as well as the side wall sections,are longitudinally continuous.

The top section of the carrier is provided with a straight row ofapertures 2| which are of such size and configuration as to fit withreasonable snugness about the lower portions of the necks and shouldersof the bottles. As here shown they are substantially circular but ifdesired they may be elongated somewhat in a direction transverse to thebending lines in order to increase conformability of the top section tothe bottle shoulders.

Adjacent the bending lines i3, i4, defining the bottom section, thereare provided apertures 22 arranged in two rows of three each, theseapertures being alined with neck-receiving apertures 2|. This is a.desirable form of the aforesaid provision for locking or grippingengagement of the base edges or rims 24 of the bottles by the side wallsections I 5 and I6. As here shown. said apertures are generallytriangular in form, each with its base 23 parallel to the bending linesl3 and i4 and most desirably havin at least the two corners adjacentthis base rounded. In this instance, said bases 23 of these rimgrippingapertures are located on the bending lines i3 and Il; and since thebottom section [2 is narrower than the diameter of the cylindricalbottle body, the other two edges of each of these apertures extendaround the bottle rims and inwardly a short distance under the bottlesin the completed package, the bottom section nevertheless remaininglongitudinally continuous. This arrangement is particularly effective insecuring good gripping contact of the edges of apertures 22 with theportions of the bottle rims protruding therethrough.

Most desirably, the center lines through the respective top openings 2|and the respectively cooperating lateral base openings 22 are spacedapart longitudinally of the carrier a distance slightly greater than thebottle diameter, so that when the bottles are in position in the carrierthey are held slightly out of contact at both their shoulders and bases.The space between bottles in the row may amount, in a typical instance,to around one-sixteenth to one-eighth inch.

As here shown, the side wall sections and lateral or shoulder portionsof the top section are cut away as indicated at 25 so that the endbottles have a larger portion of their surface exposed at the side thanthe intermediate bottle in the row. Besides being desirable for displaypurposes, this has the effect also of making it slightly easier toremove the end bottles from the carrier as will further appearhereinafter.

The carton is also provided with a carrying handle indicated generallyat 26. This is in the form of a strip which may be of the same flexiblematerial as the carrier itself, terminally anchored in the opposedupright side walls and extending over the top of the carrier; the stripbeing of suflicient length to provide a loop affording a grip portion 21well above the tops of the bottles so that there will be plenty of roomfor the knuckles between this portion and the tops of the bottles whenthe handle loop is grasped. The handle should be of such character thatit can be collapsed downwardly toward the carrier top on either side ofthe center bottle of the row in order not to interfere with stacking thepackages one on top of another. For this purpose, any suitable type ofhandle strip having barbed ends engaging in slits or slots in the sidewalls of the carrier is suitable, but the particular form hereillustrated has special advantages for several reasons, especially whenused with bottle carriers required to carry fairly heavy loads. In theparticular form here shown, the handle or handle strip, which is formedof one piece of paperboard, is bifurcated at each end portion to providetwo locking members or tongues 28, each having a doubly barbed head 29,these barbed heads being adapted to enter a pair of spaced locking slots30 provided in the side walls of the carrier adjacent the top. The slotsare so contoured that the pair of locking heads 29 can be readily thrusttherelnto if the handle end is bent slightly about its center line toconcave it slightly. This arrangement provides four barbs or hearingpoints at each end of the handle, instead of the conventional two barbs,thus reducing by 50 per cent the shearing stress of each barb againstthe sheet materialof the carrier. This is of extreme importance where,as is frequently the case, the load carried amounts to as much as twelvepounds or more. The length of the slot 3i separating the members 28 ateach end of the handle strip, that is, the effective length of theindividual locking tongues, should be suflicient to permit collapsingthe handle toward the carrier top to the desired extent before it isstopped by engagement of the separating slot end with the section 32 ofsheet material left between the locking slots 30 of each pair. Thearrangement permits rocking the handle loop to one side or the other ofthe central bottle neck so that it can be thrust entirely below the topsof the bottles.

In order to reinforce the grip portion 21 and render it more comfortableto the hand, the blank from which the handle is formed is so cut as toprovide marginal flaps 33 which are folded under and glued in position.A score line 34 at each end of the grip portion 21 facilitates bendingof the handle strip at these locations.

Assuming the carrier to have been completed and assembled with thehandle as shown in Fig. 6, which illustrates the assemblage in fiat orknocked down condition as received from the carton manufacturer, it canbe rapidly loaded in the manner now to be described. After the carrieris opened up and stood erect upon its bottom l2, the central bottle isfirst placed in position by holding it at the base and thrusting it intoeither end of the carrier at an angle so that its capped upper endenters the central one of the aligned openings 2| in the top section,the neck being pushed therethrough far enough to permit the body of thebottle then to be forced into the erect position illustrated. Because ofthe co-ordinatlon of the various structural features already discussed,this involves placing the material of the carrier under an appreciableperipheral or circumferential bursting stress which, however, is notsufiicient to cause rupture.

The stress is most noticeable as the bottle base enters the end of thecarrier, and again as it passes over the unapertured portion of the sidewalls just before enteringthe opposed pair of openings 22 at the middleof the carrier. Those localities of stress constitute relativelyconstricted end and intermediate peripheral (circumferential) zones ofreduced effective crosssectional area. When the bottle has attained itsfinal upright position, this stress is relieved owing to the provisionof the cooperating lateral base openings 22, and the proper correlationor co-ordination of the effective height of the container with thediameter of the neck opening 2|.

The two end bottles are then grasped, one in each hand, and similarlythrust in angularly to project their neck portions through end apertures2| and forced into upright position against the resistance of therestricted peripheral end zones of the carrier, the stress on thecarrier being considerably relieved as soon as the bottles have slippedpast the constricted end zones and into the somewhat larger zonesdefined by the cooperating lateral base openings 22.

That there is substantial stress on the carrier material in thusinserting the bottles into position is evidenced by the snap" with whichthey assume their final upright positions. There is 8 evidently somemomentary stretching of the carrier material which, although the elasticlimit of the material is relatively low, is not sufiicient to cause asubstantial permanent set, assuming the carrier to be properlyproportioned in accordance with the principles of the invention.

In removing the bottles from the container, the operation is the reverseof that described. By grasping the protruding neck of an end bottle andgiving it a kind of twist or tilt into the position illustrated at theleft in Fig. 4, with the lower portion of the neck bearing against thecontainer top, and at the same time pushing endwise, the bottle springsout quickly with little eilfort. After removal of either and bottle,the. intermediate bottle comes out easily in the same general manner.

In order to provide for slight irregularities in size and contour ofeven supposedly uniform or standard sized bottles, and to guard againstbursting the carrier when loading it in the manner above described,provision may be made whereby the margins of the neck openings 2| aresomewhat weakened in such manner that they will yield under stress toaccommodate the bottles without actual rupture of the carrier. Forexample, small cuts 2m may be provided, one on each side of the centralneck opening 2|, and one on the inner side only of each end neckopening, to permit slight upward yielding of the margins of the neckopenings, with resultant relief of bursting tension on the carriermaterial. While convenient and sometimes desirable for this purpose,these small cuts or slits are not indispensable, since it is possible toaccomplish much the same purpose in other ways as, for instance, bygiving the neck openings a very slightly larger diameter than should berequired for the given standard size bottle. This diameter enlargementmay be on the order of onethirty-second or one-sixteenth of an lnch. Itresults in a very slightly looser final package, but not to an extentthat is objectionable in practice. The middle opening 2| may also bemade slightly larger than the others, since the neck of thecorresponding bottle has to enter it at a greater angle from thevertical than the angle at which the necks of the end bottles enter theend openings.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 9-12, thecarrier C is designed to carry six bottles B in two longitudinal rows ofthree each. The top section 40 of the carrier is included betweenbending lines 4!. Each side section 42 extends from a bending line 4| toa bending line 43; while the bottom is formed by end portions 44 and 45which overlap and are securely fastened together as by gluing, the gluedoverlap being indicated at 48 in Fig. 11'.

The top section is provided with two rows of neck-receiving apertures 41which are circular in their portions adjacent the central crest portion40a of the carrier top and taper toward the respective bend lines 41defining the lateral edges of said top. Shaping the openings in this wayfacilitates loading of the two rows of bottles into the container andlikewise their subsequent removal from the container by the consumer. Italso furthers the important general objective of causing all parts ofthe carrier to conform closely and snugly to the contained articlegroup. Additional pairs of bending lines 48 and 49 enable the edges ofthe openings to engage with the desired degree of closeness the lowerneck portions and shoulders of the bottles, which together may beregarded as constituting the top face of the bottle group, and tocontribute generally to the snugness with which the carrier hugs thebottle group not only on its top face but also on its two vertical sidefaces and bottom face in circumferential series therewith. Each of theside sections 42 is provided with openings 50, in line, respectively,with corresponding neck openings 41, said openings 50 being similar toopenings 22 of the single line bottle carrier already described andbeing provided for a' similar purpose. As shown in Figs. and 12, thebottom section of the carrier is substantially narrower than twice thediameter of the bottle of given size which the carrier accommodates,whereby the base portions of openings 50 extend around the base edges orrims 50a of the bottles and under the bottle bottoms on each side of thepackage, thereby enhancing the gripping action of the edges of eachaperture 50 on the rim of the bottle engaged thereby.

The longitudinal spacing apart, between centers, of the adjacent neckopenings 41 and corresponding lateral base openings 50 may be slightlygreater than the given bottle diameter, so that the bottles in eachlongitudinal row are slightly spaced apart both at their shoulders andat their base edges or rims. In addition, the two series of neckopenings may be transversely spaced apart sufficiently to prevent theshoulders of the bottles of the two longitudinal rows from contacting,as clearly shown in Fig. 10. This leaves only the two bottles in eachtransverse row in contact, or a total of three contact points in thisparticular instance. Even this latter can be eliminated, if desired, byturning up a margin of one of the ends of the blank to provide alongitudinally extending separator 5| as illustrated in Fig. 13.

A handle 52, which may be of the same general type as that shown inFigs. 7 and 8, has its bifurcated barbed ends engaged in pairs oflooking slots 53 provided near the upper edges of side walls 42, and iscollapsible down upon the container top in the manner already described.

It will be noted that in the carrier illustrated in Figs. 9-11 theperipheral edge at each open end is in one plane instead of beingrecessed on the sides as in the type of carrier first described. Thishas the effect of somewhat stiffening the constricted peripheral zonesat the open ends; although in this type of carrier also it is entirelyfeasible to cut away the end margins of the sides for greater exposureof the end bottles.

In both types of carriers shown in the drawings, the width of thelateral base openings (22 or 50) on the side adjacent the bottom sectionshould desirably be at least about two-fifths of the bottle basediameter, in order to get the best effect in gripping or looking thebottle rims so as to hold the bottle against accidental dislodgment. Inpractice, the proportion may well be increased to as much as one-half oreven a somewhat larger proportion of the bottle diameter. Their verticalextent upwardly along the side sections of the carrier may vary, but forbest results should be suflicient to permit a substantial area of thebottle surface above the rim to extend into the aperture and be engagedby the edges thereof. This, in conjunction with the use of a bottomsection width less than one bottle diameter, or two bottle diameters asthe case may be, in addition to properly correlating therewith and witheach other the size of the bottle neck receiving openings and theover-all height of the container as herein disclosed, causes thecontainer to snugly conform to and confine the bottle group on all fourcontacted faces thereof. Thereby, whether the bottles of the group be inone row or two rows, and whatever may be the position of the package,the bottles are effectively wedged or forced into locking engagementwith the lateral base apertures and positively maintained so en'- gaged.Hence the bottles will not be released by any jar or bump to whichpackages of this kind are subjected in even rather rough and carelesshandling. The packages herein disclosed can be picked up and carried bythe neck of any one of the contained bottles, if desired, without dangerof any of the bottles falling out. They can even be held up by one endmargin of the carrier, with the longitudinal axis of the carriervertical, and can also be shaken considerably in this position, withoutany bottle dropping out.

When the package is lifted or held suspended by the handle, as it iswhen, for example, it is being carried from the store by the consumer,it is particularly difficult for the bottles to be dislodged and fallout of the carrier; indeed when the package is so suspended, it israther difficult to remove then intentionally as by grasping the necksand twisting them out in the manner hereinabove described. This isbecause the upward pull of the carrying handle on the side walls causesthe latter to hug the sides of the bottle group even more closely, andthereby to increase the gripping or locking action of the base apertureson the adjacent bottle rims. On the other hand, when the package is setdown on a table, for example, as is naturally done when it is desired toremove one or more bottles, this gripping action of the carirer sides onthe bottles, although still effective to prevent their accidentaldislodgment in any position of the package, is lessened to such anextent that the bottles can then be removed comparatively easily bygrasping the bottle necks and giving the bottles the tilting or twistingmovement before described.

It is possible, of course, to pack the bottles in the container orcarrier so tightly that it becomes very diflicult to get them outwithout rupturing the container at one or another of the constrictedperipheral zones. This is not to be recommended where it is desired thatthe carrier shall be used for return of empty bottles, but otherwisethere is no objection to so doing, and such practice is to be understoodas within the scope of the broad invention.

It is also to be noted that by having the carrier fit rather more snuglyabout the bottle group in the first instance than is necessary orperhaps desirable, and then letting the resultant package standundisturbed for a suflicient time, it is possible, instead of providinglateral base apertures in the carrier blank as supplied, to stretch thesheet material at the localities where it is tightly tensioned againstthe bottle surfaces, especially at the base edges or rims thereof,thereby producing indentations or recesses in the side walls which,because of the permanent set which may thus be given to the sheetmaterial, remain permanently and provide effectively a locking orgripping action on the bottle rims similar to that which is produced bythe gripping apertures 22 or 50 in the specific forms of carrierillustrated in the drawings. Also, after a sumcient time has elapsed,the tensioning of the carrier as a whole about the bottle groupdiminishes because of the resultant slight permanent peripheral orcircumferential elongation of the carrier, so that the final fit of thecarrier about the group, while still snug, is such that the bottles canbe tilted is within the scope of the invention.

The amount by which the width of the bottom section of the carrierbetween the defining score linesmay desirably be less than one bottlediameter in the single-row carrier, or less than twice the bottlediameter in the two-row carrier, is variable in practice. In the two-rowcarrier, it is found that a differential of from about three-fourths toone inch is usually desirable; while in the single row type, thisdifferential may usually range approximately from three-sixteenths tothree-fourths of an inch, for example. The amount of this differentialnaturally depends somewhat upon the size of the bottles, usuallyincreasing with the bottle diameter.

Due to the aforesaid correlation of the various structural features ofthe novel carrier, the package resulting from loading the carrier withthe particular size and type of bottle for which the carrier is in eachinstance designed is characterized by great compactness and relativerigidity, and by even distribution of strains both in regard to thecarrier itself and to the pressure it exerts on the enclosed orencircled bottle group, as well as the pressure within said group at thevery few points where they are required to contact or exert pressure oneagainst another. The bottles being substantially incapable of relativemovement within the carrier, breakage from this cause, so characteristicof many bottle carriers heretofore proposed, is virtually eliminated.Furthermore, for the same reason, the package is practically noiselessin handling because of the substantial absence of any clink or ping ofbottles hitting one another. Moreover, the compactness and rigidity ofthe package structure, and the uniformity of strain distributioncharacterizing it, which render the package a relatively non-deformableunit although the tensioned container material itself is so thin andflexible, make possible very marked economy in the amount of boardrequired in manufacturing the container or carrier, not only in respectto area of board but also weight of board. The extreme simplicity of thecarrier blank, which in general form is a rectangular strip of lengthsuflicient only to fit peripherally, as a continuous tube, about thebottle group at substantially shoulder height, reduces to a minimum thearea of board required. But in addition, it becomes possible to useboard of thinner gauge than can be used for prior proposed carriersdesigned for equal loads. Thus, the novel carrier renders it feasible toeconomize substantially in material,

in both these ways. The saving thus efiected in board area alone isfrequently as much as 40 to 50 per cent or more.

From what has been said herelnabove, it is apparent that; by reason ofthe compactness and pronounced rigidity of the novel structure of thepackage as a whole, that is, of the bottle group in combination with thesnugly conforming and confining continuous (in effect endless) thinflexible carrier strip or band'tensioned about the group in the mannerdescribed, any incipient movement of a bottle out of its normal positionrelative to the other components of the package instantly sets upgreatly increased tension over the entire length of said strip, withconsequent development of bursting stress reactions which, since theyare distributed throughout the package, are therefore not excessive atany point and yet are integrated cooperatively into a considerable totaleffective force acting directly upon said bottle to resist and restrainsuch movement from continuing; and that said resistance increases at anextremely rapid rate with any tendency of such bottle movement tocontinue beyond the point of incipiency. It is believed that thisprinciple of construction has never before been utilized in the bottlecarrier art, and it leads to important desirable results not attainableheretofore. Thus, by properly proportioning and correlating the carriertube and its aperturing relative, in each instance, to the given groupof bottles having a particular standard or selected uniform shape andsize in accordance with the principles of the invention herein setforth, paperboard of given gauge and strength test characteristics havebeen utilized far more efficiently than heretofore, and the use ofpaperboard of much thinner gauge than could previously be employed atall for bottle carriers is rendered entirely practicable, wherebysavings in carrier material of the order of magnitudehereinaboveindicated are often realizable in actual practice, not to mention otherobvious advantagesinherent in this novel type of bottle carrierconstruction.

While reference has been made hereinabove more particularly to handpacking, the novel carrier adapts itself admirably to machine packingnd, in fact, is believed to be the first bottle carr.. 1' known in theart which is practical to pack by machine. In using the present carrierfor machine packing, the carrier blank is folded about the bottle groupinstead of being first'set up into a finished container and the bottlesthen loaded thereinto as hereinabove described. This method of packingforming no part of the present invention, it is not further describedherein.

The term paperboard or board is employed herein in a generic sense toinclude the various well-known commercial products known as paperboard,boxboard, cardboard, pulp board, kraft, etc., with Or withoutwaterproofing or other special treatment. Any of these materials,provided it be of relatively light gauge and flexible enough to permitof its being tensioned circumferentially about four faces of an articlegroup so as to conform snugly to all said faces as herein disclosed, issuitable to employ in practicing the invention.

As a further guide to the practice-of the invention, specific data forconstructing two specific embodiments thereof, corresponding to the twotypes illustrated in the drawings and described in some detailhereinabove, will now be given.

Example 1 The container is to carry three bottles of 29 fluid ouncecapacity in a single row, and is to be made from a blank like thatillustrated in Fig- 5, using kraft board of 0.032 inch gauge. Thebottles and contents weigh a. few ounces less than 12 pounds. Theover-all height of the capped botties is substantially 12 inches, andthe diameter (rim and body) is 3 /2 inches.

The top l8 (peripheral distance between bend lines l1 and I9) is 6inches wide, with the central portion thereof between bend lines 20measuring 2 /2 inches. The bottom section I2 is also 2% inches wide,while each of the connecting side wall sections and Iii measures 6%inches between the respective pairs of bend lines I4-I'I and l3-l9.

The center lines of the three sets of apertures, each set consisting ofa top or neck-receiving aperture 2| and two lateral base apertures 22.of generally triangular'iorm, are spaced apart 3% inches. The circulartop apertures have a diameter of 1% inch. Each aperture 22 is 1 /2 inchwide at its base 23 and has an altitude of substantially 2 inches."

The height of the set-up and loaded carrier, measured from the bottom I!to the crest of the top, is about 8% inches. At the bottom and crest,the carrier has a length of inches measured parallel to the bottle row,while at the side walls it measures 9 inches.

The handle, made of the same material as the carrier, may have anover-all length of 17% inches, with the central hand-grip portionmeasuring 5% inches between bend lines 34. The barbed locking members 28are each inch wide, spaced apart 6 inch by slot 3|; the overall widthacross the four barbs at the two heads being 2% inches. The cooperatinglocking slots 30 in the carrier side walls each have a width of inch atthe base and extend i% inch perpendicular thereto; each pair beingspaced apart inch.

The combined weight of the carrier and handle is approximately 2 /2ounces.

Example 2 This container is to carry six 12-ounce bottles in two rows ofthree each, and is to be made from a blank like that illustrated in Fig.11, using kraft board of 0.040 inch gauge. The bottles and contentsweigh approximately 10% pounds. The over-all height of the cappedbottles is substantially 9 inches, and the bottle diameter is 2 /2inches.

The top 40, measured between bend lines II on the flat blank, is 6%inches wide, the portion between bend lines 49 being 4 inches wide. Eachside wall 42 is 5% inches measured between adjacent bend lines 4| and43, while the bottom section, measured between bend lines 43 in theset-up container is 4% inches wide.

The center lines of the three sets of apertures 41, 50, whichrespectively engage the three transverse pairs of bottles, are spacedapart 21%; inches; and the width of the crest section 40a, by which thenecks of the two longitudinal rows of bottles are held apart is 1 ,4;inches, this sufflcing to leave a slight space between the shoulders ofthe bottles between the two rows.

At its circular end, each neck-receiving aperture 41 has a diameter of 1/2 inch parallel to the carrier length. These apertures extend towardthe wide walls a distance of 2 /2 inches, except in the case of thecenter openings which are /4 inch shorter in order to avoid having toonarrow a section of material between their ends and the adjacent lockingslots 53 in the side walls.

The height of the set-up and loaded carrie measured from the bottom tothe crest 40a is about 7 /8 inches, and the, carrier has a uniformlength of 8 inches.

The handle may be of the same type as in Example 1, but can be somewhatshorter because of the smaller height of the bottles. The weight of thecarrier and handle together approximates 2% ounces.

The principles of the invention are of course applicable to thepackaging of all containers which, whether or not they are custbmarilycalled bottles, resemble bottles in having a generally cylindrical orcolumnar body portion and in decreasing in diameter toward one end toprovide a more or less tapering neck portion; and the term "bottle is tobe understood as used herein with correspondingly broad significance.Cap-sealed cans, for example, are to be understood as within the scopeof the term as used in this broad sense.

What is claimed is:

1. A bottle carrier adapted to hold a plurality of cylindrical bottlesof predetermined uniform size and shape with upwardly tapering neckportions, which comprises a strip of relatively thin flexible sheetmaterial suitably bent and having its ends overlapped and joined to forman openended tubular container with a top section and a bottom section,both longitudinally continuous and connected together by two opposedupright side walls, said top section being provided adjacentsubstantially the topmost part thereof with apertures in substantiallyrectilinear arrangement and large enough to permit the tapered neckportions of a group of bottles placed in the carrier to project asubstantial distance upwardly therebeyond, with said topmost partextending transversely between the lower portions of the bottle necksand substantially perpendicular to the bottle axes, said side wallshaving provision adjacent their respective junctions with 'said bottomsection for gripping engagement with the base edges or rims of suchbottles; the size of said apertures in the top section being socorrelated with the peripheral distance between them and the respectiveaforesaid junctions and said sheet material being of such thinness andflexibility that, when bottles of the predetermined size and shape forwhich the carrier is designed are contained therein, such grippingengagement of the bottle rims is compelled by the snugness with whichthe carrier conforms circumferentially to the top, bottom and twoopposed sides of the bottle group, whereby the resultant packageconstitutes as a whole a relatively non-deformable unit of substantialrigidity.

2. A bottle carrier adapted to hold a plurality of cylindrical bottlesof predetermined uniform size and shape with upwardly tapering neckportions, which comprises a strip of relatively thin flexible sheetmaterial suitably bent and having its ends overlapped and joined to forman openended tubular container with a top section and a bottom section,both longitudinally continuous and connected together by two opposedupright side walls, said top section being provided adjacentsubstantially the topmost part thereof with apertures in substantiallyrectilinear arrangement and large enough to permit the tapered neckportions of a group of bottles placed in the carrier to project asubstantial distance upwardly therebey'ond, with said topmost partextending transversely between the lower portions of the bottle necksand substantially perpendicular to the bottle axes, said side wallsbeing apertured adjacent their respective junctions with said bottomsection for gripping engagement with the base edges or rims of suchbottles, such base apertures each having an effective rimgripping widthequal to at least two-fifths oi the given bottle diameter; the size ofsaid apertures in the top section being so correlated with theperipheral distance between them and the re- 15 spective aforesaidjunctions and said sheet material being of such thinness and flexibilitythat, when bottles of the predetermined size and shape for which thecarrier is designed are contained therein, the edges of such baseapertures engage the respective bottle rims and resist movement of thebottles toward either end of the carrier, such engagement beingcompelled by the snugness with which the carrier conformscircumferentially to the top, bottom and two opposed sides of the bottlegroup, whereby the resultant package constitutes as a whole a relativelynon-deformable unit of substantial rigidity.

3. A bottle carrier as set forth in claim 2 wherein said top section hasa single row of neckreceiving apertures, and the width of said bottomsection is less than the bottle diameter.

4. A bottle carrier as set forth in claim 2, wherein said top sectionhas two rows of neckreceiving apertures in rectangular arrangement, andthe width of said bottom section is less than twice the bottle diameter.

5. A bottle carrier as set forth in claim 2, wherein said top sectionhas two rows of neckreceiving apertures in rectangular arrangement, andthe width of said bottom section is less than twice the bottle diameter,said, neck-receiving apertures and said base apertures being spacedapart between centers, in their respective longitudinal rows, a distanceslightly exceeding one bottle diameter.

6. A bottle carrier as set forth in claim 2, wherein said top sectionhas two rows of neckreceiving apertures in rectangular arrangement, andthe width of said bottom section is less than twice the bottle diameter,said neck-receiving apertures and said base apertures being spaced apartbetween centers, in their respective longitudinal rows, a distanceslightly exceeding one bottle diameter, and said rows of neck-receivingapertures being spaced apart between centers a distance slightlyexceeding one bottle diameter.

7. A bottle carrier adapted to hold a plurality of cylindrical articlesof predetermined uniform size 16 and shape with upwardly tapering neckportions, which comprises a strip of flexible sheet material having itsends joined to form an open-ended tubular container comprising a topsection and a bottom section connected together by two opposed uprlghtside walls, said top section being provided with apertures adapted topermit the tapered neck portions of articles placed in the carrier toproject upwardly therebeyond, at least some of said apertures havingtheir margins weakened to facilitate loading said articles into thecontainer through its open ends, the crosssectional dimensioning of saidtubular container and the dimensioning of the apertures in said topsection being so correlated with each other and with the predetermineddimensions and shape of the article group which the carrier is intendedto hold that loading said articles into position within the carrierthrough its open ends places said strip of sheet material undersubstantial bursting stress compelling it to conform snugly to thosefaces of said article group about which it extends circumferentially.

ERNEST M. BROGDEN. RONALD R. BROGDEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

France July 22, 1911

